THE CONTINENT

Choose General Information on Australia here Geography Flora & Fauna Discovery Settlement Aboriginal History Aboriginal Culture National Holidays Visas Customs Quarantine Language Currency Food & Wine

Geography

Australia is the only country occupying a whole continent, albeit the smallest one, lying on and extending north and south from the Tropic of Capricorn. With an area covering 7,682,300 square kilometres, it is the sixth largest country in the world after Russia, Canada, China, the United States of America and Brazil.

Australia occupies one of the oldest landmasses and the flattest of all continents. The highest point is Mount Kosciuszko being 2,228 metres and is located in the Australia Alps between New South Wales and Victoria. The longest river, originating in Queensland, is the Darling River, measuring 2,736 kilometres in length.

The coastline consisting of tranquil bays, wonderful beaches with pounding surf, rocky outcrops and dramatic sheer cliffs is 36,735 kilometres long. Australia is bounded by the dark blue waters of the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Arafura Sea to the north, lapped by the turquoise waves of the Indian Ocean to the west, and the mighty Southern Ocean to the south.

The fertile coastal strip hides a dry and inhospitable centre, the Outback, a photographer's delight, with its colours of flaming red, rich brown, pale yellow and orange interspersed by the bluish-green of low scrub and the linen-white trunks of ghost gum trees. This seemingly endless land is broken by salt lakes, starkly beautiful mountains like the MacDonnell Ranges near Alice Springs, Flinders Ranges in South Australia and the mysterious rock formations of Ayers Rock/Uluru, Mt Olga/Kata Tjuta, and Mt Augustus.

Australia is divided into six states: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania and two territories: the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. The states and territories each have a capital city, flag, and even their own flora and fauna emblems. Australia is also responsible for administering seven external territories: Norfolk Island, Cocos (Keeling) Island, Christmas Island, the Ashmore & Cartier Islands Territory, the Territory of Heard Island, Coral Sea Islands Territory, the sub Antarctic McDonald Islands and the Australian Antarctic Territory.

There is nowhere quite like Australia, with its fascinating blend of cultures and lifestyles, friendly people, unique wildlife and wide range of sporting activities. If you are seeking adventure or relaxation you'll discover all the variety you need at any time of the year. Whether you want to escape into the Outback, spot koalas on Kangaroo Island, or climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge, all the information is here to let you plan your Down Under holiday adventure.

Flora & Fauna

Don't be surprised to encounter a hopping kangaroo or running emu, which is a large flightless bird, while driving along in the countryside. These national symbols, featured in the Australian coat of arms are found throughout the continent in large numbers. Australia's isolation for more than 55 million years has created a unique sanctuary of animals and plants found nowhere else in the world.

Australia's marsupials did not have to compete with highly developed mammals and there are still over 100 species which flourish in ideal conditions. Take the cute koala for instance, sleeping peacefully on a branch high above the ground in a gum-tree with the young holding itself tight to mum's back. Keep your eyes wide open, they're hard to see but can be spotted in national parks and forests along the east coast. Wildlife sanctuaries let you observe them from close range and some even allow visitors into the enclosure.

Australia hosts a really interesting animal group, the monotremes, egg laying mammals, that are often referred to as living fossils, like the platypus - a river dwelling little animal with duck bill and an agile furry body resembling an otter. Another representative of this group is the echidna or spiny anteater. While visiting a zoo don't forget to observe the wombat, a large, grazing, burrowing marsupial. Essentially nocturnal, wombats have been in Australia for 15 million years and are found in many parts of Australia. The Tasmanian Devil, a carnivorous marsupial is a fascinating animal. Now only found in the wild in Tasmania, the nocturnal Tassie Devil is basically a scavenger, with a loud screech and powerful jaws.

There are 520 lizard species in Australia that range from small squeaking geckos to the spectacular frill-necked lizard and the swift moving goanna that can reach a size of 2 metres. Whales migrate from Antarctica during winter to warmer waters off Australia. The mighty humpback travels along the east coast while the southern right whales frequent the south and the western coast, bearing up and plunging into water again, playing and frolicking.

The Great Barrier Reef along the east coast off Queensland is the longest and most complex living coral system in the world and provides a habitat for a wide range of marine animals. Another area noted for its prolific wildlife is Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory - enjoy the sight of waterbirds, crocodiles, wild buffaloes or go fishing for the prized barramundi.

Discovering Australia's birds is one of the delights of visiting Down Under, with more than 750 species of birds recorded, 300 of which are found nowhere else in the world. Listen to the unique laugh of the kookaburra, a large kingfisher, enjoy the sight of the many different parrots, feed the brilliantly plumed rainbow lorikeets in Queensland, or watch as hundreds of small fairy penguins march up the beach to their burrows every night at dusk on Phillip Island.

Australia has many vegetation regions. Fill your lungs with the heavy scented air of the rainforests, or the distinctive smell of the eucalyptus, commonly called gum tree. Wildflowers turn open country into a blaze of colour in spring and some of the best known are the warpath, Strut's desert pea, kangaroo paw and the Christmas bush.

Discovery

Originally breaking away from the super continent 'Gondwana' Australia settled in its current position about fifteen million years ago. The continent is also one of the most stable of all landmasses and has been free of mountain-building forces for 100 million years.

The earliest European explorers who knew about the mysterious 'Terra Australis', were the Portuguese, namely Luis Vaes de Torres who sailed the narrow strait between the tip of Cape York and New Guinea in the 16th century, followed by Dutch navigators Dirk Hartog, Van Diemen and Abel Tasman who mapped much of the coastline but didn't show interest in settling a hostile and barren continent.

It was not until 1770 that the fertile east coast was sighted by Captain James Cook of the British Royal Navy, in command of his ship the 'Endeavour', who landed in Botany Bay, south of Sydney. On the ship there were several scientists, and a botanist who during their forays ashore made amazing discoveries of plants and animals, never seen before. After Captain Cook left Botany Bay he travelled north and charted the coastline reporting that the east coast was fertile and suitable for settlement. He named the land New South Wales and claimed it for the British Crown in the name of King George III.

During a stop in Queensland where his ship needed repair, Cook made contact with the local Aborigines and was quite impressed with the apparent happiness they lived in.

Settlement

After the American Revolution and following independence Britain had nowhere to dispose of his unwanted citizens and a quick solution had to be found. Overcrowded jails and a lack of raw material for ship building and other industries encouraged the British Government to claim the new-found land and develop it as a penal colony where convict labour could produce crops and supply materials for England.

Captain Arthur Phillip, who became Australia's first governor, led the First Fleet of 11 ships with 736 convicts and their guards into Port Jackson, now known as Sydney Harbour, in 1788. Those who survived the long voyage were confronted by an untamed land and food shortages.

Despite the severity of their sentences, many convicts were transported for offences as moderate as stealing food, poaching wildlife on private land or causing political unrest. Fewer than three per cent were convicted of crimes of violence, 38 per cent were first offenders. The majority were from urban metropolises such as London, Manchester, Liverpool, Dublin and Glasgow. A total of 160,000 convicts were brought to the Australian colonies until 1852 when transportation ended.

Many convicts who completed their sentences chose to stay in Australia as farmers and labourers. Free settlers trickled in from 1793, lured by the promise of cheap land and convict labour. Explorers opened up new country in all directions and rich grazing land was discovered west of Sydney. Wool soon became one of the country's most important industries.

During the 1850s, gold and copper discoveries brought a fresh influx of immigrants from Europe, China and America. Some of the richest gold seams were found at Ballarat, north of Melbourne and in central Western Australia at Kalgoorlie while large copper deposits were discovered at Yorke Peninsula in South Australia.

As the cities grew and the roads connecting them were upgraded a sense of nationalism developed and Australia was declared a commonwealth on January 1, 1901.

Aboriginal History

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are one of the world's oldest civilisations.

It is generally thought that Aborigines have been living on the continent for the last 50,000 years, originally migrating from Indonesia. The oldest skeleton found in Australia was at Lake Mungo in south-west New South Wales, believed to be 38,000 years old and bears traces of ceremonial ochre. This is thought to be the oldest sign of ochre use ever discovered.

Unlike most other races, Aborigines were not cultivators, relying instead on a form of controlled burning of vegetation known as "fire-stick farming". They did not develop a sense of land ownership, although Aboriginal children were taught from an early age that they belonged to the land and must respect tribal boundaries. Tribes returned to particular sites to bury their dead. Some areas were designated sacred sites because of their association with the Dreamtime, the time when the earth was formed and cycles of life and nature were initiated.

Aboriginal legends, songs and dances tell of powerful spirits who created the land and people during the Dreamtime. There was no written Aboriginal language and, in fact, most of the 600 tribes spoke different dialects and rarely met except on ceremonial occasions. The tradition of the Dreamtime, however, was a unifying force and rock paintings depicting this creation period can be found dotted throughout the country. Some of the most striking and best preserved of these can be viewed at rock galleries in Kakadu National Park and other parts of northern Australia.

The arrival of white people gradually brought an end to the traditional Aboriginal way of life, when settlement began to encroach on tribal lands. Today, most Aborigines live in cities and towns or in isolated settlements near tribal lands. Few continue their nomadic ways.

In recent years, white Australians have become more sensitive to the plight of Aborigines, resulting in increased health and educational services, greater recognition of Aboriginal land rights and a growing appreciation of Aboriginal culture. Specialised galleries display Aboriginal art, tools, musical instruments and artefacts. These are highly valued and avidly sought by collectors all over the world.

Aboriginal Culture

Aborigines lived in isolation for thousands of years and having no written history, only fragments of their rich culture remain. While the precise meanings of many art sites were lost when clans were either displaced or destroyed, it is probable that, like the land around them, certain sites had great religious significance and stories, beliefs, rituals and songs were connected to them.

Aboriginal art has primarily social and religious functions. It tells of the Dreamtime when the "creation ancestors" travelled across the land, creating the seasons, forming the land and clashing with other creatures. It explains the laws which govern the ceremonies and day-to-day life of each family group (tribe). It is also a record of happenings such as the killing of an animal for food, the passing of a family group and in more recent times the arrival of the white man.

Rock art in its many forms is still a living part of a spectacular array of art forms connected with religious and daily secular life. Ground sculpture, body painting, wood carving and bark painting are other art forms which are combined with rich oral traditions, elaborate songs and dance styles.

National Holidays

Dates with no further remark are "Australia-wide".

Visas

Passports - All visitors are required to possess a valid passport for entry into Australia and New Zealand.

All visitors to Australia except citizens of New Zealand need a visa or an Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) before departure to Australia. Citizens of many countries wishing to visit Australia may now travel on an ETA which is an electronic replacement for the traditional visa.

Airlines and travel agents are able to arrange for an ETA. They are also available from a private company called Australian Visas Ltd., which charges a nominal fee to your credit or charge card and can issue an ETA instantly over the telephone. Further information can be found on their web site on http://www.australianvisas.com.

Nationals who are not eligible to apply for an ETA must make written application on the appropriate for to their nearest Australian Embassy or Consulate. This requirement also applies for stay of longer than three (3) months. Further information may be found in the Immigration Section of the Government of Australia web site on http://www.immi.gov.au.

Travel Restrictions - At certain times, travel restrictions may be put in place for travel to any particular country. Please check with the appropriate government department of your country:

For the UK:  http://www.fco.gov.uk

Customs

There are strict laws prohibiting or restricting the entry of drugs, steroids, weapons, firearms, protected wildlife and associated products. If you are uncertain about anything in your baggage, declare it and bring it to the attention of a Custom Officer.

There is no limit on the amount of Australian and/or foreign cash that may be brought into or taken out of Australia. However amounts over AUD $10,000, or equivalent in foreign currency must be reported on arrival or departure. Further information may be found in the Customs Section of the Government of Australia web site on http://www.customs.gov.au.

Quarantine

Australia is a beautiful country, free from many pests and diseases found elsewhere in the world. It is vital that you declare anything that could harm the wildlife, agricultural industries and plants, including fresh and packaged foods, fruit, eggs, meat, vegetables, seeds, animals, plants or wood.

Language

English is Australia's official language - though you will hear many colourful local expressions as well as the Australian accent. Do not hesitate to ask questions; people in Australia are very helpful.

Currency

The Australian currency is decimal, with the dollar as the basic unit (100 cents equals one dollar). Notes come in $100, $50, $20, $10, and $5 denominations. Coins come in 5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, $1, and $2 denominations.

Food and Wine

Food and eating habits underwent a mini-revolution in recent decades and the sampling of Australian food can be a visit's highlight. Since 1945, the country's original Anglo-Irish population base has been enriched by successive waves of immigrants who added their own cuisine to the Australian diet. Given its climate, fresh produce and diverse ethnic roots, it's no surprise that the sunny, spicy flavours of the Mediterranean and Southeast Asia permeate menus.

Meat still plays a vital part in the staple Australian diet and the choice and quality is impressive and still inexpensive by international standards - try juicy beef steaks, lamb, pork, poultry or if you're more adventurous kangaroo, emu, crocodile or even witchetty grub - an Aboriginal delicacy. Australia has a superb range of succulent seafood - prawns (shrimp), lobsters, octopus, oyster, mudcrabs, Balmain Bugs (a small crustacean), and a huge variety of fresh fish is on offer complemented by vegetables and salad, all grown locally. To finish off the meal don't go past our wide range of fruit from Tasmanian apples and berry fruit to tropical juicy Queensland mangoes, papayas, lychees, avocados or citrus fruit.

Mundane it may seem, there is nothing ordinary in an Australian sandwich - we're masters at packing a bread roll with fresh ingredients made to your order, as people crowding city parks at lunchtime enjoying their custom-prepared 'sambos' testify.

Dining facilities are available to suit all requirements from first-class restaurants, bistros, outdoor cafes and good quality fast-food outlets to pub counters.

In Australia, being such a pristine and unpolluted country, tap water is safe to drink anywhere. But who wants to drink water when you can have some of the best beers, and wines on the planet? If you're into 'amber fluid' (that's beer in Australian slang) try - Fosters, Carlton Cold, Tooheys, XXXX (pronounced four-ex), Powers, Swan, Victoria Bitter, Cascade, Boags, Coopers, Redback just to mention the well-known brands and not forgetting the dozens of boutique beers brewed around the country.

Wine drinking is increasingly popular as wine production is becoming more sophisticated and eating habits change. Australia's great climate is conducive to grape growing and all states have extensive wine areas - the Barossa in South Australia and the Hunter Valley in New South Wales being the oldest and most famous. Styles vary from region to region but they all have their unmistakable flavour and although it might take a while to find what suits your palate, the effort is worth making!

Having morning and afternoon tea is still a very widespread custom and Australians consume an amazing quantity of this aromatic drink. Coffee is being drunk in increasing volume and the choice is wide from the traditional 'long black' to the frothy cappuccino.